The Crossbow
A story written by TCA dedicated to the events caused by Sneezy and his mass markings of topics. After Sneezy was banned, TCA added an Epilogue to the story. The Crossbow I walked into the small village to rest. As I entered, I noticed a crowd gathering around a man in very old robes. He appeared to be preaching something. It was then that I noticed a poster behind him, posted on the wall of the building, with the sketch of a man upon it. The sketch showed that he was likely in his early twenties, and there appeared to be a very hefty bounty on his head. This looks like a job I could get behind. He can't be too dangerous, he's simply a common criminal. They seem to want him dead badly. "Not only does he rob the people of their valuables, but he has committed murder!" said the man high upon the pedestal. He shuffled a little bit and looked at one person to the next with a dramatic glare. He then reached into his handbag and pulled out an arrow. He threw said arrow into the poster behind him. "Should they proceed to commence any form of retaliation, it has been found that the people who do so have been shot with a poison crossbow bolt. We have had three victims in the past week!" I saw a few people in the audience who seemed in mourning for their fallen loved ones. I listened to the man a bit more. He continued, "It's been said that he is going to strike our foreign diplomat next. The diplomat's house is well known for being quite decorated, so be on the lookout, every one of you willing to bring him to justice. He's so proud of his abilities that he feels he can make it known to all who he will strike next. Someone, please, do something. Anything." His pleading grew annoying so I figured I'd walk around, talk to the townsfolk. I want that money. There's no man who has been able to escape my grasp, my hunt is always a success. I saw a nearby bar and walked inside, ordered some drinks, and sat at a table. I observed the others in the bar. They look at me as though I'm unfamiliar. Well, I hope that these stares of surprise turn to stares of happiness. They'll know who I am soon enough. I drank a bit and looked outside the window. It appears as though the town's lord has been struck as well, and is dying painfully. I noticed a tent nearby full of other victims. This man must be brought to Justice. I finished my drink and got up. I don't want to aggravate the townsfolk any more than they already appear to be, so I'll wait at that diplomat's house for the thief to appear. Later that night, I hid in the trees and waited for him to come as planned. There were a few other people but I haven't seen them patrolling for a while. I think something is wrong. I jumped down from the tree and walked to the other side of the house and noticed that they had been murdered where they stood. The window was smashed open as well. I climbed in from the broken window and found that the diplomat had been hit in the leg, and his valuables were being taken by a shadowy man wearing a hooded cloak. I took out my sword and prepared to fight against him but he ran upstairs. I chased him to the roof and began explaining to him why exactly he's about to get the worst kind of punishment imaginable. As I rushed toward him, he jumped off the roof and landed on a soft sheet held by others. They were dressed in knight armour and held crossbows as well. "You didn't think I worked alone, now, did you? I have crossbowmen on my side!" The thief yelled as he ran away. "Get him!" The crossbowmen began to shoot at me, and I ran back and jumped into the forest. It was a rough landing, but I hadn't any time to waste. As I made it to safety, I noticed a rip in my clothes and a green liquid oozing a cut that he been left. I was poisoned too. Epilogue The thief ran deep into the woods, and then out into a clearing surrounded by forest. A group of crossbowmen stepped from the shadows of the forest and aimed their weapons at the thief. "You can bribe us no longer." Said the leader crossbowman. The thief dropped his bag of stolen items and looked as if he was about to say something when he was suddenly shot by a bolt from behind him. He began twitching slightly. The other crossbowmen soon followed, one by one shooting him until he dropped to the ground dead. The leader stepped up to the dead thief and pulled a tissue out from his bag, and tossed it upon the corpse. He then said, "You'll be needing this. In Hell." Analysis #The "bounty hunter" is both an original main character and an allusion to TCA's alt 'GeheimnisMann' with the line 'they look at me as though I'm unfamiliar' (Referencing that the topic was posted with his alt). #The small village is Gen 90s itself, the villagers being the 90-ites. #The Thief is Axzeux. #His robberies are references to the karma losses, the poisoning is a reference to being warned or suspended, and the deaths are a metaphor for being banned. #The Lord who had been poisoned is Renan, the current leader of Gen 90s. #The Diplomat that the Thief was targeting is TCA himself, referencing TCA's recent post deletion and 3KL. #The Crossbowmen are the moderators. The fact that they act as town guards is a reference to the fact that the mods continued to help Azzy despite him being a glaringly obvious problem. #The twitching in the Epilogue is a metaphor for Azzy's behaviour. #The tissue is a reference to the nickname Sneezy. See Also *TheCorruptAngel *Gen 90s fiction *Banuke Category:Topics